Mechanized hand cutting blowpipe



March 28, 1950 R. CHELBORG MECHANIZED HAND CUTTING BLOWPIPE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 4, 1948 .All

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lNvEN-roR RUDOLPH CHELBORG ATTORNEY March 28, 1950 R. cHELBoRG MECHANIZED HAND CUTTING BLowPIPE lNvENToR RUDOLPH CHELBORG BY ATTORNEY 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 A, ozCu Y @N www3 Flled Feb 4 1948 l`h y k Fatenterl ar. 28, 1950 iUNx'rED :STATES MEGHANIZEDwHAND CUTTINGYBLOWPIPE Rudolph'Chelboi'g,"Maplewood, NJ'J., assigner zto The Linde" Air 'fPrdductsl Company? azcorporation of'Ohio Application: Februaryl 4, 1948,*1Sei'ialNo.16,178

(Cl..t-26G-i;2.3)

13""C1ams. il ,",This invention relates .to .torchesorlblowpipes, and moreparticularly to hand..cutting .blowpipes Whichare partly mechanized.

In manipulating .an .oxygen .cutting blowpipe,

.skill on the .partof the operatoris .necessary to Conventional manipulationiof ahand cutting.

blowpipe .isnot .only .tiring to .the..operatr, r.but he must .be .trained inthis type of Work.

. Hence, there exists.-v aneed for. .a hand. cutting blovvpipe whichis at least partlymechanizedand constructed so that itcanbe .properlymanipu- .lated by even an unskilledoperator.

The main .object .of .this vvinvention is to; provide a mechanized'. hand .cutting .bloWpipe, which .lls such need, so that vvvithfit unskilled .as well as Vskilled operators can easily .make smooth cuts which do not require .any-.subsequent machining of the Work.

According. .to the .inventionthere is provideda novel blowpipe comprising a .blovvpipe ".handle `vvhichis elongated, anda blnwpipev bdytvvhi'chV is handle, whereby it is only necessary for theoperator to hold theblowpipesteady by. simply'ggripping thehandleduringsuch Working stroke'of the nozzle. .'Ihismakes itpossible for aninexperiencedl operator i to make" a smooth,; straight cut, comparable .to"a"'machine cut.

' The `bl'ovvpipe Vbody is .connected'toa V'power `drive and equipped 'with' suitable controlsg'so that the' operator can'hold the handle vvi'th't'his rhands andv operatethecontrols withhis foot;':if

`verse directions at'will. Ii'renablesanVv inexperienced operator to kproduce t. straight and relatively waverless cuts Witha'handblowpipe. "It,

has the advantage: of *being extremely" portable, p'ermittingvmachine tty-pe cuts that :would be.. im-

possible in many cases Withanystandardzcutting -machine. For; this vreas0n;it...is .especia1ly:.11seful :in :foundries for removing t risers vthat :are f encountered in manytdierent positions on castings.

Thisnis the-.primary :purposefforuwhichhe yin- .lventionwas .ir1.tended, but it Willznaturallyxbe applicable to;a;great:many.;classesr. of-.'work,; such ias.l` shiprscrappng;ittingfstructural members; vin plaoenon the. job, rand cutting 4,gussets and other ,small .-members.. from .lagpplate in la fabricating ishop, foriexample.

Inthezdrawingm luisa View mainly iin side elevation of 'va mechanized handcutting bl-oWpDe4 system. illustra-ting the invention;

Fig. 12.is a view-mainly inperspective, oa modification;

.\Fig. 3,.-isanenlargedsectional vievvof the air .turbinef employed in .the modification shown in Fig. 2;

2 Eig-.4. is a view.,insideelevation of .a two-pedal modication of. ,the remote control;

Fig.-5lisa perspective View .of another modi- ,.cationpf .the invention .and

Fig. 6 .is a Adiagrannnatic View, mainly in ,side 'elevation' illustrating .the operation of the modil.ication .0f`Fig.5.

V'Asshown in Fig.1 aA mechanized hand cutting blowpipeB' is.provi`ded .which includes an` elon- ,gated tubular.Y handleH land an elongated bodyf 'I which is mounted for longitudinal sliding movement in and axially of such handle. The blow'- Dipe body lperse maybe. of conventional construction, such .aslthat shown,-which comprises parallel pipes and, well known to those skilled inthe art, except for the handle and the cutting .oxygen valve. Thefbo'dy'T includes a valve block 'l0 provided with .suitable Hvalvedpassages for mixing ythe oxygen and acetylene or other preheatinggases which are supplied thereto by suitable hoses II and 12. Cutting oXygen'is supplied toY the. blowpipe'through ,a hosel [3.

`The body`v- 'IrisY `urged baokwardlyin'the handle 'H"by'.acompression spring lll'located, on aguide rvrd |'5""'Which` isf'fastened'" near Oneend to the rblock'l and extends parallel'tothegpipes and9, vthrough ran eyelina'front panel Il ofthe handle. Themaximumjextent'of `movement of the body Tin either direction `With respect tothe '1hand1e`His1limited bythe lengthv of the Hcylinder "'21l,'but suitablestopsmay, if"desired,lbe'provided `on theVA handleLH" forV this purpose.

The blowpipebody'is'provided with arr angular head I8 to which is attached a cutting nozzle N having the usual central cutting oxygen discharge passage surrounded by an annularly arranged group of preheating gas discharge oriflces, the use of which is well known to those skilled in the art.

A remotely located pedal or foot-operated lever P is attached to a four-way valve A by a link I9 through a crank 25, and to a cutting oxygen valve C by a stem 20 so that, when the lever P is at the illustrated full line position, the cutting oxygen valve C is closed, and compressed air from a regulator R flows through the four-way valve A via passage 22 and conduit 23 to an air cylinder 24 of a drive cylinder assembly D, pushing against a piston 26 therein, and forcing it from a retracted position (shown in dotted outline) to an extended position (shown in full lines), causing air in the cylinder on the other side of the piston to exhaust from the four-way valve A via passages 28 and 30. The lever P is urged toward such position by a spring 3 I.

Piston 26 is connected by a, rod 32 to a bar 34 at 36 so that the extension of the piston 26 also effects forward movement of a flexible cable 38, which is connected to bar 34 by a guide rod 39. The rod 39 slides in a tube 40 which is mounted on the cylinder 24 in parallel relation thereto. A similar rod 42 is connected to the other end of cable 38 and to the blowpipe handle H at 44. Cable enclosure 46, which is fixed to the blowpipe body at 48, and to the tube 46 at 50, thus moves over cable 38 in a direction opposite to the direction of tension of the cable, bringing the blowpipe body l to the extended position (shown in full lines) where it is set to start to cut. Handle H remains stationary during the cutting operation. The speed of the body 'I during the cutting stroke of the nozzle N is controlled by suitable adjustable means such as the illustrated hydraulic system S.

Such hydraulic system includes a piston 52 connected to bar 34 through a rod 36 for movement in unison with air piston 26; the piston 52 moving to its dotted line position when the foot lever P is moved to the dotted line position. In so doing hydraulic fluid ahead of the moving piston 52 is forced from cylinder 54 into a passage 62 exerting pressure against a check valve 58, causing it to close; and flowing through an adjustable cutting speed control valve 60 and returning to the hydraulic cylinder 54 via passage 64 With the blowpipe body in the extended position (shown in full lines), and the preheating flames adjusted to neutral, the foot lever P is depressed to the cutting oxygen on position (shown in dotted lines), initiating travel of the blowpipe body along the line of cut. This is effected as gas passages 22 and 30 in four-way valve A are turned 90 degrees by link |9, to new positions (shown in dotted outline) which conducts compressed air from regulator R to passage 22 into conduit 28 and then to air cylinder 24. Entering cylinder 24 the compressed air exerts pressure against air piston 26, forcing it to the dotted line position, and causing air to exhaust from the system through passage 23 in the four-way valve A. When this occurs, the action of piston 26, which is connected to bar 34, effects a compressing action on cable 38, so that as piston 26 retracts, the blowpipe body 1, to'

which the cable enclosure 46 is affixed at 48, also retracts along the line of cut bringing the body 4 l to the retracted position, as shown in dotted lines.

During the cutting action, the hydraulic cylinder piston 52, being connected to bar 34, also retracts, forcing hydraulic fluid from the cylinder 54 via passage 62, forcing check valve 58 to close, and returning fluid to the opposite side of piston 52 -in the hydraulic cylinder 54 through conduit 64, valve 60 and conduit 62. The adjustment of valve 60 regulates the cutting speed. A reservoir 66 containing hydraulic fluid, and a piston 68 loaded by a spring 10, communicates with the conduit 64 for the purpose of compensating any v variation in the volume of hydraulic fluid -in the system, caused, for example, by the reciprocating movement of piston rod 36 in the hydraulic cylinder 54 as the blowpipe body is extended and retracted.

The operator supports his arm on a suitable arm rest not shown, and holding the blowpipe B steady by gripping the handle H, manipulates the foot lever P which initiates flow of the cutting oxygen and effects movement of the blowpipe nozzle N along the proposed line of cut.

The blowpipe handle is held steady or tilted according to the shape of the work by the operator during the subsequent cutting operation.

In the modification shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the blowpipe body 'l is driven by an air motor M which is mounted on the handle H. The operator grips the handle H2 to hold the blowpipe B2 steady, and after preheating the work, steps on the foot lever P2 which is mounted to pivot on a fulcrum 72. This operates a three-way valve system 14, and depressing the lever P2 causes cutting oxygen valve C to open, air valve 16 to open and air valve 'F8 to close, and compresses the lever-return spring 3|. The blowpipe body l initially is in the retracted position 1 (shown in dotted outline). When the foot lever P2 is depressed, compressed air from the air supply which includes the adjustable pressure regulator R, ows into air hose 82 Which conducts it to the air motor or turbine M. The turbine rotor 86 is thus caused to rotate in a counter-clockwise direction, Fig. 3, the turbine speed being controlled by an adjustable control valve 90, the spent air exhausting from the air turbine through a vent.

The rotor of the turbine is provided with a pinion 94 which engages a gear S6, rotating gear 96, Fig. 2, in a clockwise direction. The gear 06 engages a gear S8 effecting counter-clockwise motion of a pinion |00 which engages rack |02,

vcausing the blowpipe body 'l to slide forward at a preset speed in the handle H2 to the extended position (shown in full lines), the cut being effected during the travel of the nozzle N across the work.

After the cut is made, relaxing pressure on the foot lever P2 unloads return spring 3|, and its restoring force returns the foot lever to its normal olf or retracted position. In this movement air valve '|B opens, air valve 'i6 closes, and cutting oxygen valve C closes. Consequently, the direction of the turbine motivating air is reversed and the compressed air flows into turbine M through an air hose |04 and again is expelled through vent 92. This causes a clockwise rotation of the turbine pinion 94 which in turn drives gear 66 in a counterclockwise direction which results in a clockwise rotation of gear 98 and pinion |00, resulting in the retraction of the blowpipe body l in handle H2 through the action of pinion |00 on rack |02.

The preheating gases supplied to the blowpipe FB2 are-Inotaaffectedrby etnefrabove Avali/ing iarrangement.

An alternative pedal arrangement is-ishownllin vided to make fthe lcuttingioxygenl'foot 'control Ithe vnozzle lto the @extended position and Ithen 4'siin'ultane'ously 'releasing :pedal P4 and Esteloping onlthe cutting "oxygen cont'rol .'P-3 eped'al, after preheating the &work forthe :required v'length of stime.

Fig. i2 shows 'the fge'ar Ytrain and pinionigears i'exposed toview. This wasnpurposely done lfor clarity. The gears fareienclosed `in a 'suitable housing -not ishown) .in .order=toprotect1both igear-me'chanism;andtheioperator. V

The gear reduction can be of any ratio and willl depend-onthicknessesto be cut, since thicker sections require more cutting time, and hence,A

slower blowpipetraveL Ii-'higher gear reduction Mis necessaryfapatentedarrangement is available as illustrated and described 'in Patent "2,336,581

of L. W. Young.

Insteadof fan entirely vpneuirnatic system, an alternative hydraulic-pneumatic system y.may be used for lextension and retraction of the blow- Ipipe body 1 and nozzle-Noi a blowpipe B3 as .illustrate'din Figs. 5 and 6. Here, a four-way valve A and a crank 20' iny combination With air and hydraulic cylinder-s 2 4*- and 54 effect the 'movement or travel of nozzle-Nfand blowpipe 'i 'a'iong theline of cut. K

-In operation, with the blowpipe body 'i in :revt'racted position, air is conducted iinto and throuf'ghiour-way valve A viazpassages 2 i "Z2 iand '23,- and then into one end of l'air cylinder `2li wherein the air exerts force against the'piston `6 causingit to move forwardly in cylinder` gli. Piston 26 is rigidly fastened to the blowpipe body 1 by the rod3'6 v'anda bracket yt5, so that forwar'dtravel of the blowpipeb'ody l' to extended l(p'ositio'n-is'feffected by the forward strokeof pisf t0n 2S. Bracket 35 is also attached -"to, piston T52 of the h'ydranlic cylinder i' 54 '.-s'o that by Fsuitfable adjustmentofthe cutti'ngspeed control v'valve B0, the rate of travel of the blowpipe nozzle N can be controlled, the speed being proportional to the degree of valve opening.

The air in cylinder 24 ahead of the moving piston 26 is forced into conduit 28 which finally exhausts out through the four-Way valve passage The ud in hydraulic cylinder 54 ahead of moving piston 52 is forced out of cylinder 5d exerting force against check valve 58 closing this valve and owing through speed control valve 60 into conduit 64 and again into cylinder 54.

When retraction of the blowpipe nozzle N is desired, crank 20 is moved through a 90 degree arc, which reverses the route of air passage through four-way valve A, so that air supplied through inlet passage 2l flows directly to conduit 2B va passage 30 shown by dotted lines, and then aintothe ctherfendioffairrcylinderfwhere, 'exerting 'forcefon piston 26, witxeffects Vreturn -of @piston 26 toits-.original :positionffandfini consequence returns "theblowpipe tbody v"I `*to nthe retracted iposition. Ther air?l behind-:piston 26 nowfflows into conduit 23 liandexhausts fthrou'gh four-way valveA vi-a .passageZZgalso shown'byldotted lines. i /Infthe hydraulic system, piston 52,1 which acts lin unison' with-:piston =216 -duev 'to the :connection through Vrods 32 and :36 and bracket'fl, returns to the initialrretractediposition and thehydraulic fluid-iisffforcedoutofone end fof cylinder 5d into 'c'onduit'ili. Pressure of f this fluid eiects opening 'of checkvalve 58,'and -theiiiuid flows through the valvei and lthrough-speed control-valve 6d into the fioi-wardzend of hydraulicicylinderfEd-via conduit -62','effedting a relativelyfquick'return ofthe nozfzle N.

The :reservoir 6'6 fcontaining hydraulic fluid included:infthehydraulic'system. 1t contains-the .piston'Imi-fandl compression' spring '713. -This device serves to 'compensate'v for f any f change .in volume of hydraulicfluid'such as thatv resultingfrom :the movement lof the 'piston ro'd inl and outof Hits cylinder.

i With 4.this system cutting Oxygen `is `of `course ,independent of the blowpipe drive, and therefore lthe blowpipecan beused either as --an-ordinary hand cuttingblowpipauor as :the mechanized type where the f nozzle :travels :automatically along lthe -line f'of "cut, ibut the operator .merely f steadies if the blowpipe L by grippinglthe handle or :holder 'fl-I3.

-iIt1is also possible,ffac'cordin'g'to vthe invention, :to eifectal drive -for-such a'm'echar`1izedy blowpipe 'by the-useroffan I:electric motor, ratcheting `or iinch'ingnieans, remotely .driven by flexible shaft or f bel-ting, or by by'passing some i of the f'cutting foxygen'ltodrive acylindeniturbine,`r or positive dis. placement otarydevice. rAlso the blowpipe body =canlbe dii-ventbyasprlng! contained; inthe handle vrwhich can beiwoundup by hand or. by -almotor when required, the fm'ovement ofthe body being y.controlled fby a fsuitable governor f which is 'adjustable, without #departing from the lnvention.

i-l. YA mechanized handfcutting -iblowpipe device comprising the combination'fwith van oxy-acetylene blowpipe provided with an elongatedftubular handle and rablowpipe body which is also uelongated ISand operatively 'associated with said handle `so 'that' the body can 'reciprocate longitufdinally through and axially :of `the handle `between fixed points, :a vvalve block `:connected 'to one end of thelbody, ani'angularfhead connected f to the otheren'd:ofthefbodypan AOxy-acetylene `'cutting nozzle fmounted ion said rhead, and hoses @connected to' said? block. for supplying cuttingfoxy- "gen and .preheatingoxygen and acetylene ytothe blowpipe, of means operative when energized to drive said body through one stroke in a desired direction with respect to said handle, a cutting oxygen supply valve which controls the flow of cutting oxygen in the cutting oxygen supply hose, and remote control means for operating said cutting oxygen supply valve and said blowpipe body driving means, so that cutting oxygen is supplied to said nozzle when the blowpipe body driving means is energized to start the cutting stroke of the body and nozzle, and continues to be supplied during such stroke, whereby cutting is accomplished by simply gripping the blowpipe handle and operating the remote control means.

2. A mechanized hand cutting blowpipe device, as defined by claim 1, in which the blowpipe body driving means includes an air cylinder contain ing a piston which is connected to the body by a. flexible cable, and a two-position four-Way air valve which is connected through an adjustable pressure regulator to a suitable source of compressed air, so that when the valve is in one position compressed air is supplied to the cylinder on one side of the piston and exhausted from the opposite side, and when the valve is moved to the other position compressed air` is supplied to the cylinder on the other side of the piston and exhausted from the opposite side.

3. A mechanized hand cutting blowpipe device, as defined by claim 2, in which the movement of the compressed air driven piston is regulated by a hydraulic governor comprising a hydraulic cylinder containing a piston which is connected to said compressed air driven piston, a conduit containing a check valve communicating with the hydraulic cylinder on opposite sides of the piston therein, an adjustable piston speed control valve connected in shunt with said check valve, and a reservoir containing a spring-loaded DiS- ton Ioperative to compensate for any change in the volume of iiuid in the hydraulic governor.

4. A mechanized hand cutting blowpipe device, as dened by claim 3, in which the remote control means includes a single pedal which is operatively connected to said four-way valve and also to said cutting oxygen supply valve.

5. A mechanized hand cutting blowpipe device comprising the combination with a cutting blowpipe comprising a blowpipe handle, and a blowpipe body mounted to reciprocate in said handle, of a reversible motor mounted on said handle, means connecting said motor to said body for driving the latter with respect to the handle -when the motor is energized, and remote control means for energizing said motor to drive the blowpipe body in a desired direction.

6. A mechanized hand cutting blowpipe device, as defined by claim 5, in which the motor is a compressed air driven turbine.

7. A mechanized hand cutting blowpipe device, `as dened by claim 6, in which the remote con'- trol means includes compressed air supply valve means and a pedal associated therewith for reversing the flow of compressed air supplied to said turbine.

8. A mechanized hand cutting blowpipe device, as defined by claim 7, in l"which a cutting oxygen supply line containing a valve is connected to said body, and means connecting such valve with the pedal so that cutting oxygen is supplied to the blowpipe during the cutting stroke of the blowpipe body when the pedal is depressed.

9. A mechanized hand cutting blowpipe device, as dened by claim 8, in which an adjustable throttle valve is provided in the compressed air 8 supply line to the turbine for the purpose of governing the speed of the body during the cutting stroke thereof.

10. A mechanized hand blowpipe comprising the combination with an elongated body having a burner head on one end and a gas inlet block on the other end, gas supply lines connected to the block, a nozzle mounted on the head, a handle in which said body is adapted to slide, a pneumatic motor mounted on said handle, means connecting said motor to said body to drive said body, and means for controlling the supply of air to said motor.

11. A mechanized hand blowpipe, as dened by claim 10, in which an adjustable governor controls the speed of the body during the working stroke of the blowpipe body with respect to the handle.

12. A mechanized hand blowpipe, as defined by :claim 11, in which the governor is mounted on the handle and comprises a hydraulic system comprising a cylinder containing a piston which is connected to move with the blowpipe body.

13. A mechanized hand blowpipe, as defined by claim 12, in which a pipe containing a check valve is in fluid communication with opposite ends of the cylinder, and another pipe containing an adjustable throttle valve is also in fluid communication with the opposite ends of the cylinder.

RUDOLPH CHELBORG.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 331,691 Duennisch Dec. 1, 1885 897,676 Thompson Sept. 1, 1908 1,112,783 Gabraith Oct. 6, 1914 1,205,818 Thomas Nov. 21, 1916 1,487,043 Youtsey et al Mar. 18, 1924 1,503,898 Hott Aug. 5, 1924 1,653,907 Hilgerink Dec. 27, 1927 1,704,641 Weed Mar. 5, 1929 1,835,723 Salzer Dec. 8, 1931 1,912,612 Wills June 6, 1933 2,102,040 Slade Dec. 14, 1937 2,298,755 Diller Oct. 13, 1942 2,350,779 Lapkoff June 6, 1944 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 14,319 Great Britain Mar. 31, 1910 of 1909 662,422 Germany July 13, 1938 556,043 Great Britain Sept. 17, 1943 

